The NY Times asks: is HD DVD dead?
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Jan 5th 2008 at 12:00AM }
According to Greenfield, NBC Universal did not commit to backing HD DVD exclusively, which means their catalog of products can move to Blu-ray in the future. Fans of Heroes and Battlestar Galactica, among other series, can breathe a sigh of relief. Paramount and Dreamworks, on the other hand, do have an exclusivity agreement, but may have a potential "escape clause" to abandon their support of the format.
Toshiba and Microsoft are the big backers of HD DVD in this format war, and it appears that WB's announcement caught the electronics manufacturer off-guard. According to GameDaily, the company released a statement: "Toshiba is quite surprised by Warner Bros.' decision to abandon HD DVD in favor of Blu-ray, despite the fact that there are various contracts in place between our companies concerning the support of HD DVD ... We were particularly disappointed that this decision was made in spite of the significant momentum HD DVD has gained in the US market as well as other regions in 2007."
The next steps are unclear at the moment. Will Toshiba and Microsoft raise the white flag, or will they bust out the moneybags to continue the battle? "We will assess the potential impact of this announcement with the other HD DVD partner companies and evaluate potential next steps. We remain firm in our belief that HD DVD is the format best suited to the wants and needs of the consumer."
[Sources: GameDaily, The NY Times]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Nikko @ Jan 5th 2008 12:16AM
YEs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Frankenstein Black @ Jan 5th 2008 12:46PM
Exactly!! And the HD DVD news has been bad since the PS3 showed up.
http://www.dvdempire.com/Content/Features/hidef_wars.asp
zyxwiley @ Jan 5th 2008 12:18AM
good news
... though you shoulda gone with a porky pig 'thats all folks' instead of the bugs image.
Ed @ Jan 5th 2008 12:24AM
And the world responds with a resounding "Yes!"
d3rr1ck64 @ Jan 5th 2008 12:32AM
Please god let HD-DVD die Toshiba, you're not going to win no matter what you do now.
Anthony @ Jan 5th 2008 12:33AM
LONG LIVE BLU-RAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
joey2joey @ Jan 5th 2008 12:36AM
I guess paramount looks like a bunch of idiots now. Also, it wasn't a complete suprise. PS3fanboy had an article that said warner brothers was probaly going to pick the winning side.
SuicideNinja @ Jan 5th 2008 12:49AM
It saddens me how quickly people jumped on the Blu-ray train when HD-DVD had much better principles behind it. It supported less space but had plenty for the purpose. The group behind HD-DVD set hardward standards (thernet, upgrades, etc...the PS3 is only reliable BD player in this regard). They also set the bar for features that Blu-ray is only barely catching up to now (PiP comes to mind).
Personally, I can't wait until Blu-ray dies as well because these disc formats still feel temporary. My PS3 may play Blu-ray movies, but I'm still buying DVD's, and I'm not convinced that we need to rebuild our collections quite yet.
Dru @ Jan 5th 2008 1:30AM
Really?!? You could probably list off a few other things that HD-DVD does, but one thing it doesn't do is storage. That, IMO, trumps all the rest combined.
EDGE @ Jan 5th 2008 1:41AM
Sour grapes eh SuicideNinja ?
Blu-ray is clearly the superior format
Nate @ Jan 5th 2008 2:21AM
DVD players never had upgrades or extra functions etc. How many people actually used DVD ROM features on their movies in their computer? No one. What do people use movie discs for? Watching movies. None of this interactivity BS. Put in disc, hit play. End of story.
Blu-Ray has 66% more capacity, 60% higher bitrate and 50% higher transfer speeds. Translation - the blu-ray has a much higher potential quality than HD-DVD. All HD-DVD has right now is a few extra features, which are just extras, and can always be added with more software. Oh yeah, and cheap players, which, btw, only do 720p.
B1gC72 @ Jan 5th 2008 2:51AM
i really dont think it will mater in a couple years anyway since i believe this is a hollow victory for Sony and Blu-ray. sure i have my PS3 and a couple Blu-ray movies and they are great, but they arent all that big a step over DVD9 considering new possibly near ready technology that would lay waste to everything if it were to be released to the mainstream. im talking about Holographic and 3D optical data storage. both of these should be able to hold Terabytes of data and are estimated to be ready around 2010. i would post a Wiki link but im too lazy. but anyway, my point is, with constant advances in technology, its going to be near impossible to get comfortable with any new format since a new war will brew every couple of years.
Kohath @ Jan 5th 2008 11:23AM
Holograhic storage?
You know, products that aren't available and may never be available are always going to look better than products you can go out and buy.
You can watch those holographic discs on your huge OLED or SED flat panel. I'm sure the Phantom console will play them.
Alexander @ Jan 5th 2008 12:53AM
Honestly, thank god. I've been holding out because I didn't want to make a choice, and then find out I made the wrong one. Once HD-DVD is dead I can go Blu.
BrokenFERN @ Jan 5th 2008 1:05AM
oh god YES! HDDVD is scrambling.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/CES_2008/HD_DVD_Promo_Group_Cancels_CES_Press_Conference/1331
Kspraydad @ Jan 5th 2008 1:16AM
The Paramount exclusivity is only for another 1.5 years afaik.
KC @ Jan 5th 2008 1:40AM
The only way the format war will end quickly as a result of this is if the Warner Blu-switch encourages Universal (the HD-DVD exclusive from day 1 studio) to drop HD-DVD in favour of team Blu.
As long as Universal holds out with HD-DVD the war will continue.
Though this is certainly a good news day for Blu-Ray and unquestionably took the wind out of the sales of HD-DVD going into CES (the single biggest electronics industry event) I doubt this is the final blow in the fight.
Don @ Jan 5th 2008 1:51AM
It's as good as over, the HD-DVD camp will collapse within a couple of months. My guess is within 2-3 months we will be getting an announcement that Toshiba and Co. are pulling the plug on the HD-DVD campaign. Universal isn't dumb, they'll fold within a couple of days.
eugene @ Jan 5th 2008 2:54AM
Yup, if it were Universal that dumped HD-DVD, we wouldn't even have to ask if HD-DVD were dead or not, it would be a done deal.
PeterBeck @ Jan 5th 2008 1:53AM
Meh. While it is nice to see BD succeeding and not going the way of Sony's past products; UMDs and NET MDs , or even floundering like Laser Disc, ultimately they still have the major issue of replacing DVD as the major format. As someone with a 200+ library I'm not gonna replace all my DVDs with BDs. I will obviously grab future BD releases, and maybe the odd Limited Ultra Platinum Gold Collector Double Dip releases, but otherwise most upscaled DVDs look fine on my HD set.
I'm not much of a videophile, so maybe someone could clarify it for me, but do old films have much to gain from a BD/HD version that it doesn't already from a DVD/Digital version? I would assume that unless if a film was originally shot in a digital hi-def format like current films are, you're just squeezing blood from a stone. (ie. the BD releases of Evil Dead or Dawn of The Dead, where the film quality can only get so much better)
John @ Jan 5th 2008 3:04AM
Hey! This is some good news from us PlayStation 3 and Blu-ray supporters. I for one wanted Blu-ray to win.
Also, there has been a rumour circulating around the internet that Apple is planning on implementing Blu-ray support in their upcoming systems. I know that this is a rumour, but if Apple wanted to end the format war, the best guess is to choose Blu-ray and not HD-DVD since the format war ultimately hurts both sides of the consumer.
Kspraydad @ Jan 5th 2008 11:45AM
Apple has what ? 7% of PC sales overall?
Yes...Apple will go BD but it isn't a major tipping point.
Lets see Lenovo,Dell and HP do it.
Ed @ Jan 5th 2008 12:18PM
Apple may have a small market share, but look who uses their machines: it's mainly consumers. If seeing the option to go Blu at a reasonable price gets people to upgrade, it will get more drives into homes and more discs bought.
Arjun @ Jan 5th 2008 3:10PM
Kspraydad, you're aware that Dell backs Blu Ray also, right?
#21 @ Jan 5th 2008 3:30AM
pwnd.
Jevanzz @ Jan 5th 2008 11:25AM
Sir, I could not agree more.
Phil @ Jan 5th 2008 4:30AM
Whether it's relevant or not, the only place within 10 miles of me is an Asda, that's the only place I've found selling HD-DVD titles... everywhere else sticks to the humble DVD or stocks BD-DVD (why is it BD?).
This can ultimately have only 1 advantage in that less tech-savvy customers will not by HD films in the wrong format, something I've heard about a few times.
Would be good if a software update enabled the PS3 to play HD-DVD's... then everyone but Microsoft would be happy :)
Has anyone actually paid the additional £120 to get the HD-DVD addon for their 360 - making it more expensive than a PS3?
mint400 @ Jan 5th 2008 10:03AM
Why would you call it Blu-ray Disc - Digital Versatile Disc?
leiwei @ Jan 5th 2008 4:51AM
Some people don't seem to realize some of the good reasons for HD-DVD to die. Sure, it boasts incredible interactivity thanks in part to MS's HDi, but....
Blu-Ray isn't just for movies.
Hardware companies are busy at work releasing BD drives for laptops & desktops, regular players and recorders/rewritables as well. Take that AND the various hi-def home television BD recorders in Japan then you'll see that BD has a lot of momentum going on at every niche of the electronic department. All HD-DVD has is really just movies.
When Holographic DVDs come out that'll be great. 2010 you say? Given that, BD will have a life expectancy of two yrs by the time HDVD comes out, but I suspect more. I heard of blu-ray maybe 3-4 yrs ago before I heard of hd-dvd. I think I read about it on PopSci or maybe some major PC magazine, but it wasn't until last year did I really see bd in action. Now take into account HDVD will be "ready" by 2010. WHEN it is ready, I suspect that like BD, it'll be a very pricey medium. It'll probably be 2012 before prices are at the affordable range. Given that, if BD manages to become a household name by ~2010-2012, it'll probably be awhile til consumers decide they want to store their data into 1 TB plastics.
With the pace electronics are evolving at, I don't believe BD will last more than 10 yrs. DVD certainly didn't last that long compared to almighty VHS, and it took DVD a yr or two before people really wanted it in their homes.
Warren @ Jan 5th 2008 5:08AM
damn this must suck for xbox360 owners who bought the HD-DVD drive, and those who bought HD-DVD players. thank god i was not one of them. i was thinking of purchasing an HD-DVD player when it was $98.
wesker85 @ Jan 5th 2008 5:33AM
and HD DVD is best suited for the manufacturers as well..
but being a fangirl, all i have to say is yey!
JKPierce @ Jan 5th 2008 6:10AM
It's interesting to make the argument that Microsoft could always just throw more money at the medium, particularly considering their gaming and entertainment division hasn't ever turned a profit.
Then they made the 360. For some reason.
jango fett @ Jan 5th 2008 7:17AM
ha. bill gates ces keynote speech will be awsome indeed. i cant wait for this week to be over.
jango fett @ Jan 5th 2008 7:19AM
...to see whats gonna happen at ces after all this!
lee @ Jan 5th 2008 8:33AM
this is all M$ fault if they had just included a built in HD-DVD player into the 360 then thing would have been diffrerent but because they didnt use there brains and just wanted to beat the ps3 and make the 360 cheaper. this is why ps3 sony and blu ray are the best! R.I.P HD-DVD
DaveC @ Jan 5th 2008 8:43AM
I personally hope HD-DVD claws back and wins the war. It's cheaper than Blu-Ray ;)
jango fett @ Jan 5th 2008 9:09AM
noooooo....they bost cost the same, its just that the other companies have to look after eachother so they dont subsidize it. toshiba drove a few hd dvd players out of buisness because companies couldnt afford 100$ players. after they 'had' taken the industry the prices of newer models and such wouldnt be as low.
jango fett @ Jan 5th 2008 9:10AM
*both*
tej.jethwa @ Jan 5th 2008 11:51AM
That's right DaveC, you could probably pick some VHS tapes even cheaper. You get what u pay for
DaveC @ Jan 5th 2008 12:07PM
Wow, constructive and intelligent retorts from PS3 fanboys. Wait, I forgot that didn't happen.
Seriously, if you actually care about which format wins, then you should be an executive working for Sony or another Blu-Ray developer company.
Me, I like watching films. In the end, if I'm putting a disc in my PS3 or 360 makes no difference to me. The film is the same.
nihillasohen @ Jan 5th 2008 12:11PM
cheaper to make, NOT cheaper to purchase
the Blu-ray disc are scratch proof which adds cost
also I have yet to pay full price for a blu-ray disc, but now that you can get an HD-DVD in the bargin bin at walmart i guess they are cheaper. ;^)
DaveC @ Jan 5th 2008 12:25PM
I don't live in America. God forbid.
nihillasohen @ Jan 5th 2008 12:27PM
french?
Carlton @ Jan 5th 2008 9:07AM
Actually the interactivity features of Java are far greater than anything possible with HDi. If it wasn't for Microsoft's insistence that HD-DVD use HDi (an attempt to cock-block Sony), there never would've been a format war to begin with.
I can't think of a single advantage that HD-DVD has over Blu-Ray as far as the consumer is concerned.
@ B1gC72
You do realise that HVD drives will cost thousands of dollars, and the discs will cost hundreds though, right?
HVD is intended for businesses that require mass storage, not the consumer market.
Jim @ Jan 5th 2008 2:00PM
Both formats are flops!
Digital downloads are the future.
lildude56 @ Jan 5th 2008 10:17PM
Yes it may be the future but what company would invest in a country that doesnt have near the broadband penetration rate of South Korea, or Japan? Plus the average download speeds of North America is very low compared to Hong Kong (not entire China). In South Korea or Japan, Digital downloads is a reality, they can download an entire movie (2 hours) within 2 mins! Very little people in the US or Canada --assuming you live in the US or Canada-- have even 30mbps connections.
Jim @ Jan 6th 2008 6:06AM
1998 i had 56kbit
512kbit
1mbit
1,5mbit
2mbit
now 6mbit (16mbit possible but I don't need more)
think 5 years ahead?
--
I'm simply not convinced that Blu-ray (or HD DVD) is "next-gen" enough to not go LaserDisc.
leiwei @ Jan 5th 2008 9:31AM
IMO, Toshiba bit themselves in the ass when they did the firesale and pumped out their players at $90-100. You think Samsung is going to put money into R&D and release a sub-$90 HD-dvd player? Hell no! Even if the possibility of them releasing a $150 player, $90 still looks VERY attractive. Well seems HD-DVD is over. The group just cancelled their press conference for CES.
Frank @ Jan 5th 2008 9:40AM
Why is everyone touting this as some victory over Microsoft, and saying it's Microsoft's fault for HD-DVD failing? Microsoft only sold some 150,000 of those HD-DVD players, they weren't really invested in the war at all, they just provided an accessory for people. They didn't want to include an HD-DVD player because it woulda put the price some 200 bucks more when it came out. I'm not defending anyone here, or being a fanboy in any regard. But it seems like all of you guys are ecstatic blu-ray "won" and are busy bashing Microsoft and 360 fanboys, while none of them really care. 150,000 units sold, out of almost 18 million 360s?
emaxximus @ Jan 5th 2008 10:22AM
Why not? You know that if HD dvd was winning the format war18 million 360 fanboys would jump all over the opportunity to bash on PS3 owners even though most of them "don't care anyway" haha